Life with OCD – How to cope with minor OCD
What is OCD? I read this article at the website About.com which was published by Owen Kelly PhD. I found this very interesting because the question was is there a cure for OCD of which the answer was – no. Based on the genetic research taking place my answer would be – no not yet. OCD is a cycle of: Obsessions -> Anxiety -> Compulsions -> Relief -> Obsessions. But how to cope and even take advantage of OCD is the million dollar question?
This short article deals with moderate cases of obsessive compulsive disorder and explains different way of how to cope with OCD. Often extreme cases of OCD cannot be accommodated by family or lifestyle adjustments because they are disruptive and enslaving. The author of this article brings up some cogent points in coping with obsessive compulsive disorder. Often fear and anxiety is good; they are motivating factors and frankly; can anyone imagine a life free of fear or some sort of anxiety? No, that’s unrealistic. The best way to deal with OCD at the present is through medication management, psychotherapy, and learning to put a spin on the behavior and use it to your advantage. This is how to cope with OCD, or at least one way.
Coping with OCD Sometimes Requires Taking Advantage of the Illness
Sometimes one’s fears can teach us to be more alert of things we take for granted. For example, the “perfectionist” can give us all a lesson on being orderly and tidy, the “hoarder” can teach us to get rid of the excessive junk that we don’t need. I know of friends that have spent thousands of dollars to pay for $500 of furniture in storage? Remember, we all at sometime in our lives have probably experienced some sort of OCD symptoms; however, when these behaviors start to interfere with our lives and enslave us we need to seek help.
Owen Kelly PhD.
September, 2010
How To Cope With OCD
As with all forms of mental illness, there is no known cure for OCD. While medication can reduce or even eliminate the symptoms of OCD, if you stop taking the drug it is likely that your symptoms will return. Likewise, while psychotherapy can be very effective, if you stop using the techniques you have learned your symptoms may worsen again.
As such, OCD is generally thought of as a chronic illness meaning that much like diabetes or epilepsy, it is something you will have to work on managing every day. Although it can initially be difficult to accept, having a chronic illness like OCD requires you to shift your focus from a final OCD cure to managing and coping with the OCD symptoms.
The good news is that there are effective treatments available, and while every treatment does not work for every person, most people can get significant relief of their symptoms using a combination of medication(s) and/or psychotherapy. For people who are unable to find relief using standard treatments, new therapies in the form of deep brain stimulation are on the horizon. There are also a number of helpful strategies that you can use to cope with OCD.
Finally, although it can be frustrating to realize that there is currently no OCD cure, it may be helpful to think about the way you relate to your symptoms. Although unpleasant, anxiety is a very necessary part of life – it can help keep us safe and make us motivated to take action when there is a problem. Indeed, living a life free from anxiety is unrealistic and, in fact, would probably be a little boring. The more you can learn to accept and integrate anxiety into your life – while at the same time learning new skills to deal with anxiety other than with compulsions – the easier it will be to cope with it. These are some ways of coping with OCD – which is often one of the most difficult illnesses to treat.
